A Washington state man who allegedly opened fire Monday inside a Fred Meyer supermarket, killing one person and critically wounding a second, was arrested late last night after fleeing the store and leading police on an intense, hours-long manhunt.
Aaron Christopher Kelly, 39, was taken into custody “without incident,” according to a statement by the Richland, Washington Police Department. Officers found him as he headed east on Interstate 90 between the small town of Sprague and the city of Spokane, authorities said. He was booked into the Benton County Jail on charges of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder.
Police identified the victim who was killed as Justin Krumbah, 38. Kelly and Krumbah, who was a customer, reportedly got into a heated dispute before the shooting started at around 11 a.m., Commander Chris Lee said at a news conference Monday afternoon. However, investigators don’t know what the clash was about or if the two previously knew each other. They have not yet named the wounded person who survived, who cops said was a Fred Meyer employee.
A friend of Krumbah’s sister has launched a GoFundMe campaign in an effort to help the family pay for his funeral.
Not long after the deadly shooting, police released a photo of Kelly—a white, middle-age man last seen wearing a plaid shirt, black vest, black gaiter over his nose, and light-colored pants. He allegedly entered the Fred Meyer store pushing a shopping cart with a black backpack in the basket.
The suspect is “still at large,” City of Richland spokesperson Hollie Logan told The Daily Beast, and authorities asked the public for help in tracking him down.
“The suspect should be considered armed and dangerous,” police warned, adding that he “left the store and it is undetermined if he left on foot or in a vehicle.”
Officers from the Richland Police Department swarmed the market after receiving reports of an active shooter inside the store at 11:03 a.m. “Initial reports were of yelling and possible gun shots within the store,” the police said.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) confirmed to The Daily Beast that agents from its Seattle office responded to the scene as well.
One witness told the Tri-City Herald that they heard “at least 10 shots” fired.
Police had identified Kelly before capturing him, but kept his identity under wraps until he was in custody.
“I understand that it is a concern to the community,” Richland PD Interim Chief Brigit Clary said Monday. “This certainly is a tragic, tragic incident. Just know that we will have ongoing efforts—concentrated efforts into apprehending the suspect as quickly as possible.”
At least six schools in the area were locked down due to the shooting. Police asked local residents to avoid the area.
At least four other grocery store shootings have made headlines across the U.S. in recent months. Last March, Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 21, was arrested after allegedly opening fire in a Boulder, Colorado King Soopers, killing 10. His brother, Ali Aliwi Alissa, told The Daily Beast after the shooting that Alissa had long suffered from severe mental illness. In December, Alissa was found incompetent to stand trial.
In April, the manager of a Stop & Shop in West Hempstead, New York was allegedly shot and killed by a “troubled” employee, 31-year-old Gabriel Dewitt Wilson.
In June, 55-year-old Timothy Wall shot and killed a 69-year-old grandmother and her 2-year-old grandson before turning the gun on himself at a Publix supermarket in Royal Palm Beach, Florida.
Last weekend, 51-year-old Osmel Lugo-Gutierrez allegedly shot Franklyn Jose Pineyro dead as the 50-year-old waited on line to buy lottery tickets at a Publix in Coral Gables.